Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK Review

Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK is truly a magnificent sight to behold. It has a more than decent enough hardware configuration that can handle close to any task. What is really great about this device is the fact that it is a Dell. Now I don’t know about your personal ranking of laptop manufacturer, but in my books Dell is the top dog. Why, you may ask. It is simple: it can all be resumed into one word – Alienware. Since Dell is the fabricator of Alienware and Alienware are the best PCs/laptops in the business, it is no difficulty to assume that they are the most powerful.

I have to admit, that without certain features such as the processor of this device, this laptop could easily be mistaken with a netbook. That is because of its size, fact which sort of displeases me as I do not really enjoy small laptops. Even so, this laptop is highly upgrade-able and capable of becoming a little monster.

It comes equipped with a 2nd generation Intel i3 processor. While it may be a mere dual-core, it has a cache of 3 MB and a very powerful video card. I am of course referring to the HD 3000 video card, which is more than powerful enough to handle casual-to-moderate amounts of gaming. Keep in mind that this video card also has support for Direct X 10, so it’s pretty darn strong.

The RAM of the device aren’t DDR3 at 1600 MHz, but they are at a level below: 1333 MHz. The device comes with 3 GB of RAM but it can be upgraded all the way up to 8. If the frequency bothers you, often that can be changed via the Bios of the device if you have the know-how.

Oh and, and the time of this review, the Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK is priced bellow $400 dollars.

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Who is it for? discussing who would benefit most from this laptop...

  • Student
    From a student's perspective I can honestly say you have little time for anything else, so getting something with too much power may just be a waste of money. That is why the Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK laptop is absolutely perfect. It has just about enough strength for the great majority of games (especially the older ones, since those are better). To top it all off, it's also quite cheap so you won't have any problems with paying for it.

  • Casual User
    The Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK is also a perfect device for any casual user. It has enough power to handle any task, including those used by a casual user such as: social networking, movie watching and / or the occasional game. This device is cheap, efficient, and can be upgraded to serve more advanced tasks should you require them. Also, if you aren't too good at installing operating systems, don't worry as it already comes with the necessary software pre-installed and Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium.

  • Business User
    i15N-1294BK is also good for Business users. If you require a lot of multitasking, simply upgrade the RAM to the maximum amount and you should have no problem with that. Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK is a laptop that can fit any taste and any task. It can most definitely handle any program you throw at it and with the upgrade of the RAM you can make it even better. Also, same thing as I said earlier applies for the business users as well. If you're too lazy to install the OS / required software, know that the laptop already has them pre-installed. Also, the Microsoft deal still stands: purchase anything with Windows 7 on it and you can upgrade to Windows 8 Pro whenever it comes out.

  • Power User
    The power user is somebody that requires a lot of power for multitasking and a lot of performance. As I already said a couple of times in the past, I recommend that power users stick with the professional devices. However, even with that fact considered, this laptop can handle a moderate dose of power usage.

  • Gaming
    The gaming laptop is something with the most power as it requires all that power to handle the most demanding games available. Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK can barely be considered a gaming laptop. However, even if it does lack those features necessary it is still strong enough as to handle most of the games available. Of course, one would be foolish to force NEW games on it, but you can run just about any older game on it since it has a very potent GPU.

PROs Vs. CONs

The best part about Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK is that it has a Second Gen i3 processor. That processor has a built-in HD 3000 graphics card which is useful in many, many tasks. Another very good thing about it is the fact that the RAM is upgrade-able from 3GB to 8GB of DDR3 RAM at 1333 MHz.

The bad points of Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK are few in number, but as long as they are there they must be mentioned. I very much dislike the fact that it has no numeric key pad and that it is so tiny. Also, as far as the reviews go, I have noticed that its speakers aren't actually that powerful.

User Reviews: what others think?

There are many user reviews out there, but not many of them are critical. Most people just praise the device and say that it is the best they have owned thus far ( that was sort of expected, considering it is a Dell ). The only truly critical review was made by somebody that didn't read the description carefully. It belonged to a person that claimed the resolution of the device isn't 1600 x 900. Well, for such a small device it would be foolish to even assume its resolution is so big, but that is not for me to judge.

Upgrade Dell Inspiron i15N-1294BK to 8GB of DDR3 RAM @ 1333MHz

Summary

In conclusion: Dell i15N-1294BK is powerful, it's from a good manufacturer, it's sturdy and reliable and most of all, it's cheap. Therefore, I would definitely recommend this device for all categories ( perhaps not for power-users and hardcore gamers as they should stick with their dedicated professional laptops ).
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Technical Details

Processor Intel® Core i3 2350M 2.3GHz (2 Cores)
Video Card Intel® HD Graphics 3000
RAM Memory 3GB DDR3 @ 1333 MHz
Audio integrated with Built-in Stereo Speakers
Operating System Windows 8
Display 15.6-inch 1366 x 768px
Storage Drive 320 GB 5400rpm
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
USB 2.0 Ports 3
USB 3.0 Ports None
Built-in Camera 0.3 MP
Built-in Microphone Yes
Optical Drive DVD±RW
Memory Card Reader Yes
Bluetooth -
Headphone-out Yes
VGA-out Yes
HDMI-out Yes
LAN-out Yes
Color Obsidian Black
Width 14.80 in.
Depth 10.24 in.
Height 1.24 in.
Weight 5.2 lbs. lbs.
Battery Life up to 4 hours
Warranty 1 Year Limited

Updated on January 14th, 2013

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